Great Pain Websites and Info

[Guest guest]

All,

Oh Boy, our British friends have a great British Pain Society and some great

publications. One is especially for people with Cancer pain and has peer

reviewed articles and studies of a multi modal protocol that cancer patients to

be on. Dr. Tenent does a great job with " Survival Guide for Intractable pain at

paintopics.org and the American Pain Foundations Resources and Publications but

the British Pain Society is a guide to be included with these in presenting

treating pain effectively : )

Herea are the links and some examples:

http://www.britishpainsociety.org/pub_patient.htm

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This publication and others have illustrations that help understand what is

written. This illustrates how the pain cycle get stucks (my words) making more

pain and the pain doesn't go away, just like the research states pain is caused

by substance P, an enzyme or chemical that causes oversentization of how the

pain patient reacts to pain. I sometimes cannot stan my husband to touch me and

I have tole him it feels like a real sore pimple and I cannot pop it and I feel

my pain pathway is stuck and doesn't send chemicals to alleviate pain and a

switch is stuck and the pain signals are still coming and the gate isn't shut to

stop the process. Pictures always help me understand

B Below are paragraphs from the Cancer Pain Book publication they print and it

illustrates what needs and not people saying cancer doesn't cause pain.

Any radiation no matter how effective will cause an inflammatory response

because it is killing cancer cells and they die and have to be absorbed in the

body and excreted. Excreting these toxins cause pain and make people with Cancer

have that " flu like symptoms " and the chemicals they use for oncology systems

are so destructive the normal body tissues have to absorb that toxic combination

and any one that cannot or is not trained, especially a radiation therapist,

needs to be retrained as this is a basic lesson all of us in the medical field

learn in Nursing and Medical Concepts 101.

I am very impressed with the British Pain Society Website and it will be

added to my library. Any remarks from our UK friends and did they know about

this Pain Society ?

They also list meetings they hold on many pain subjects. It might be something

UK friends might want to go to. Let me know how you like it.

MMy first job was as a radiation therapist way back in the 1970's when radiation

therapist doctors and oncologist came together rather than fighting over which

therapy was better

as they did and patients suffer as both therapies are more effective. The

radiation shrinks the tumor and the oncologist gives chemicals/medications that

get in the blood to fight the cancer cells.

Cancer teams were not organized yet, but my Menza Doctor (Genius and always

ahead of himself) started a cancer clinical library and had us organize the

books and treatment(Remember we don't have internet yet), he assigned me to look

up all narcotics, their effectiveness and side effects and type them up and

cateorgize them in treatment effectiveness and create a rotation schedule for

the patients so they would not become tolerant and would have their pain

control,he had us create information sheets for each cancer and their treatment

options and prognosis.

Hospice was already in Europe and just starting in US but my Doctor already

had a volunteer team from local churches, his staff, and other medical personnel

that offered their time

togo to the patients houses for support. I have sat up many a night with my

patients and also given them IM shots of Morphine prescribed by my Doctor.

He was ahead of his time and he trained us in procedures and I learned much

from him, he has called me in to assist with thorensitesis (drain fluid off

abdomen) , assist in surgery with radium needles and following the patients in

the hospital, we did hospital visitation without patients in the hospital and

knew the family names.

This was one of the most rewarding jobs I had even though some of my patients

didn't make it and at 17-18 I entered a field that dealt with death everyday but

I learned not to take patients hope away, be honest, as they always asked if

they were going to die and I answered we all might die walking in font of a

truck so do the things that are on you mind worrying you. My Doctor told

his patients to go fishings, travel on vacations, have fun as much as their body

would let them and he made them comfortable with medication and was even giving

supplements such as zinc for

Patients we treated in their head and they lost taste.

Our patients wanted to laugh and all had fun with us and one of my patients put

her breast prothesis in her husband's lunch box for him to get used to it (it

was clear implants).

I worked closely with the American Cancer Society as they have " Reach for

Recovery " program for breast patients sharing exercises they should do to break

up scar tissue.

*Back then, the surgeons did not care about athectics and female patients had

long, scared incision that didn't have to be that way and the radiation caused

inflammation and redness as if

burning the skin). Thank Goodness today, it is not that way and over ninety per

cent of the breast cancers can be treated without mastectomies. (breast

removal).

I

I am sorry I wrote a book here but I think it important for pain patients to be

empowered with information and know what is going on with legislature on pain

laws in each state (this effects you

medication program) current protocol for procedures and if they are effective

(Spine Universe) and support from the wonderful members of this group that share

their pain journey to let me know I am not alone. Hope some of this information

helps, sorry I went down memory lane but wanted to share with , whose

radiation therapist was not so nice-Hang in there and show them the

information on cancer pain. Bennie

B Bennie , way down in Texas

FFrom Cancer Pain Booklet:

What can be done for people with cancer pain?

There are medicines and expertise available that can help to control cancer

pain. However, surveys show that cancer pain is still poorly controlled in many

cases. As a result, patients must know what is available, what they have a right

to and how to ask for it.

Cancer itself and the treatments for cancer, including both medicines and

surgery, can cause pain. Treatments can be directed either at the cause of the

pain (for example, the tumor itself ) or at the pain itself.

Understanding cancer pain

Cancer pain can be complicated, involving pain arising from inflammation

(swelling), nerve damage and tissue damage from many sites around the body. How

the pain develops over time varies from person to person and depends on the type

of cancer, its treatment and any other conditions that a person may have.

Neuropathic pain (nerve pain)

Nerve pain results from damage to nerves or nerve cells. In cancer, nerve damage

may be caused by:

• the tumor itself;

• the growth of the tumor pressing on nerve tissue;

• the growth of the tumor blocking the blood supply to nerve tissue; or

• anticancer drug therapies and surgery.

Inflammatory pain

Pain is one of the main signs of inflammation. Damaged tissue releases chemicals

and triggers a response by the white blood cells. The chemicals released

increase activity in the tissue receptors that detect pain and cause the nerve

fibres to become more sensitive.Information for Patients 5

Visceral pain

Visceral pain comes from the internal organs. The pain is hard to pinpoint in

one area and often feels like a spasm or a heavy feeling. As the spinal nerves

that pass pain from body sites in the case of visceral pain, the autonomic

nerves may also be involved because these control many functions of the internal

organs..

Visceral pain can be caused by:

• the cancer interrupting the blood flow to the internal organs;

• inflammation of the internal organs or their membranes caused by tissue

damage;

• compression of internal organs by the tumour • the tumour pressing on the

internal organs; or • the growth of the tumours stretching the internal organs.

Somatic pain (musculo-skeletal pain)

If cancer spreads to many bones around the body, this can cause somatic pain.

Bones have a lot of nerve fibres. Inflammation and destruction of bone tissue by

cancer cells can trigger the nerve fibres to carry pain signals. There are often

many sites of the pain and the pain can sometimes move from one site to another.

Pain as a result of cancer therapy

Chemotherapy drugs such as taxols, platins, thalidomide and bortezomib can cause

nerve pain. Pain can also be caused by surgery to remove tumors.

6 Cancer Pain Management

Knowing what to expect

Your mood can also influence the pain and make it worse. Fear and anxiety are

natural feelings for people suffering from cancer and pain. Both cancer and pain

are scary. Fear and anxiety do affect pain, especially when any new pain arises.

Because a lot of cancer pain is related to nerve damage, it can get worse over

time, even when the cancer itself is under control. Worsening pain does not

always mean that the cancer is getting worse or coming back, but the pain itself

should be treated and so it is important to tell your doctor about it.

Your doctors understand the various ways that cancer causes pain and can use

this knowledge to give you the most appropriate treatment for your pain.

However, it is important to realize that cancer pain does not follow a

predictable course and your doctor cannot tell you exactly what your pain will

be like as you undergo treatment.

Options for controlling pain – most pain can be controlled

Drugs for pain explained

In 1986, the World Health Organization created a three-step ladder as a

guideline for treating cancer pain. Mild pain might be successfully treated with

medicines like aspirin (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs), but

most forms of cancer pain need stronger painkillers. Although most cancer pain

can be controlled with oral medication (which you swallow), other procedures for

managing pain have an important role for some patients.

Opioid drugs such as morphine and codeine are the main drug treatment for cancer

pain. They are often used along with other painkillers (called adjuvants) to

improve the control of pain. Experience shows that switching between opioid

drugs can improve their effectiveness.

The side-effects of opioid medicines include feeling sick (nausea), being sick

(vomiting), constipation and feeling drowsy.